'De Hortus Sanitatis': A rare book detailing some of the earliest European medical texts has gone on display at the University of Aberdeen

A rare medieval book gives an insight into the bizarre medical practices used 500 years ago.

It has gone on display for the first time at the University of Aberdeen.

The De Hortus Sanitatis, which translates as the Garden of Health, shows some of the medical methods practiced in Scotland five centuries ago and is one of the earliest European medical texts.

The book, first printed in Mainz, Germany, in 1491, is a fusion of late medieval science and folklore.

It contains detailed writings and annotated illustrations on plants, herbs, animals, and minerals.

Meanwhile, detailed illustrations reveal how physicians used to study the colour of urine to make diagnoses.

It was once owned by George Peacock, an Aberdeen apothecary who in the early 1600s taught at the then newly-established Marischal College - one of the two founding colleges which merged to become the University of Aberdeen in 1860.

Siobhan Convery, head of Special Collections at the University of Aberdeen, said: 'Hortus was the most popular and influential herbals of its time, and served as an encyclopedia of all knowledge and folklore on plants, animals, and minerals.

'It combines elements of natural history with subjects traditionally found in herbals, accompanied by mythical fantasies and fables.

'There are striking depictions of contemporary medical practice, the making of drug compounds, treatment for the removal of head lice etcetera, as well as the settings for much of this, a surgery and an apothecary’s shop.

'One image shows a woman removing head lice from a young boy.

'Another shows a boy removing honey from a comb. In the medieval period honey was used in a wide variety of ways, to cure coughs, as a diuretic, as a cure for some poisons and even as an application to rid hair of lice.

A woman removes lice from a boys hair with a brush (left) while physicians analyse the colour of urine samples to diagnose ailments in an apothecary's shop (right)

A hand coloured illustration of the Iris flower with an annotation by owner George Peacock

'A lively scene from an apothecary’s shop shows physicians analysing the colour of urine samples to diagnose ailments. Urine charts and astrological charts were used side-by-side by physicians to diagnose diseases and to determine treatment.'

The book is part of a new exhibition, Pharmacopoeia, meaning 'preparation of drugs', which includes some of the earliest recorded interpretations of the natural sciences.

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Items on display demonstrate the history of pharmacy and medical chemistry from its roots in a monastic setting through to modern chemical isolation and synthesis.

Another 'very rare' compendium written in Middle English in the early 15th century includes herb and plant based remedies for a range of minor and major ailments, from bad breath, nose bleeds and snake bites to broken limbs, childbirth and tumours.

It reads: 'Here men may see the uses
of diverse herbs, which may be hot and may be cold, and how many things
they can be used for.'

Ms Convery said: 'It was an easy-to-use reference book.

A boy removes honey from the comb and makes a mess of his face in the process

Physicians consulting a series of patients in a sick room

A woodcut illustration of a group of intellects deep in discussion on a medical or botanical matter

'It lists fennel leaf which is said to be good for headaches and also that "to do away with aching and swelling in the womb" the patient should "drink dried fennel leaf".

'More soberly, and reflecting the high infant and maternal death in childbirth there are numerous references to concoctions and recipes to ease labour pains, to accelerate deliveries and to assist with childbirth situations.

'For example on this page, "if the child be dead in the mother’s womb take mugwort and stamp it small and plaster it to the mother’s womb until all cold and she will have delivery".

'Following on from that is the use of hemlock as a cure for insomnia: "hemlock will make a man sleep. Soak the herb in water and apply it to the temples and forehead and after bathe his feet in it, as hot as he may suffer it. Then make a plaster of henbane seed and apply it to his temples"'.

Many of the detailed drawings provide an insight into the relationship between humans and animals at the time

The exhibition also highlights the work of the early plant collectors such as Professor James Trail, who made a substantial contribution to the Aberdeen University Herbarium and the Cruickshank Botanic Gardens.

As well as tracing the history of the use of plants in medicine, the exhibition explores how plants are still being used to find new drugs, even if there is no historical use of the plant to treat disease.

Ms Convery added: 'Scientists at the University of Aberdeen are engaged in the search for new treatments for infection, inflammation, parasitic diseases and cancer using nature’s bounty.

'More recently they have turned to investigating microorganisms from extreme environments such as the Mariana trench, the deepest place on earth, the Atacama desert, the driest place on earth and the Dead Sea.

'Cultivating bacteria and fungi from these environments has led to the discovery of unique compounds by Aberdeen scientists which may form the basis of future treatments.'